Ricin
Overview
Ricin from the castor oil plant
Ricinus communis, is a highly toxic, naturally occurring protein. A dose as small as a few grains of salt can kill an adult. The LD50 of ricin is around 22 micrograms per kilogram (1.76 mg for an average adult, around 1/228 of a standard aspirin tablet (0.4 g gross) in humans if exposure is from injection
or inhalation
. Oral exposure to ricin is far less toxic and lethal dose can be up to 20–30 milligrams per kilogram.
Ricin is poison
ous if inhaled
, injected
, or ingested
, acting as a toxin by the inhibition of protein synthesis
.
Castor oil plant
The castor oil plant, Ricinus communis, is a species of flowering plant in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae. It belongs to a monotypic genus, Ricinus, and subtribe, Ricininae. The evolution of castor and its relation to other species are currently being studied.Its seed is the castor bean which,...
Ricinus communis, is a highly toxic, naturally occurring protein. A dose as small as a few grains of salt can kill an adult. The LD50 of ricin is around 22 micrograms per kilogram (1.76 mg for an average adult, around 1/228 of a standard aspirin tablet (0.4 g gross) in humans if exposure is from injection
Injection (medicine)
An injection is an infusion method of putting fluid into the body, usually with a hollow needle and a syringe which is pierced through the skin to a sufficient depth for the material to be forced into the body...
or inhalation
Inhalation
Inhalation is the movement of air from the external environment, through the air ways, and into the alveoli....
. Oral exposure to ricin is far less toxic and lethal dose can be up to 20–30 milligrams per kilogram.
Ricin is poison
Poison
In the context of biology, poisons are substances that can cause disturbances to organisms, usually by chemical reaction or other activity on the molecular scale, when a sufficient quantity is absorbed by an organism....
ous if inhaled
Inhalation
Inhalation is the movement of air from the external environment, through the air ways, and into the alveoli....
, injected
Injection (medicine)
An injection is an infusion method of putting fluid into the body, usually with a hollow needle and a syringe which is pierced through the skin to a sufficient depth for the material to be forced into the body...
, or ingested
Ingestion
Ingestion is the consumption of a substance by an organism. In animals, it normally is accomplished by taking in the substance through the mouth into the gastrointestinal tract, such as through eating or drinking...
, acting as a toxin by the inhibition of protein synthesis
Protein biosynthesis
Protein biosynthesis is the process in which cells build or manufacture proteins. The term is sometimes used to refer only to protein translation but more often it refers to a multi-step process, beginning with amino acid synthesis and transcription of nuclear DNA into messenger RNA, which is then...
.
